This is a blog about my teaching, research and service with some occasional personal comments thrown in. These are my notes on a variety of topics. If you want to follow my blog posts on a specific topic, then see the Table of Contents in the right-hand column. While I try to work in the realm of facts, logic and moral absolutes, if there are any opinions expressed here, they are my own. -WilliamHartPhD

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Sunday, March 31, 2013

Time Card: 3/24/2013 - 3/30/2013
71 hours this past week. At a conference in D.C., presented 2 papers and worked on 1 due soon. Previous weeks of this semester.Below is a record of the work that I've done over this past week, mainly in the areas of research, teaching and service. I usually average about 50 to 55 hours per week. Unlike the summer, most of my time during the fall and spring semesters is spent on teaching and service. If you are interested in how I keep track of this information and why, please let me know.

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

A campaign is “an operation or series of operations energetically pursued to accomplish a purpose: an advertising campaign for a new product; a candidate's political campaign” (American Heritage Dictionary)

An advertising campaign for a certain new product could contain a "series of operations" like

putting out press releases to the news media,

putting ads in newspapers and

posting a viral video on YouTube about the new product.

The purpose of all these "operations" is to encourage purchase of the product.

Now, what about going global?

According to McPhail,
"There are three strategic models for planning global campaigns: standardized, adaptive, and country-specific. In the standardized model, strategy is formed at the global headquarters and implemented in all operating areas [same or very similar in all countries]. In the adaptive model, a basic strategy [given from head-quarters] is adapted appropriately for each country where it will be implemented. In a country-specific model, the strategic planning is shaped to fit one country [,more grass-roots]" (Global Communication: Theories, Stakeholders, and Trends)

Let's say we are doing advertising for the multinational corporation, McDonald's. As part of the campaign that we are managing, they want 30 second TV ads for their new salads. They want to sell salads (or localized versions of salads) around the world in many different countries. Using each of the above models, how would this be done? See any benefits or drawbacks to each approach? What about in terms of costs and effectiveness?

Advertising and public relations are playing an increasing role in international communication. They've certainly gone global.

Let's start with some basic dictionary definitions.

Advertising: “The activity of attracting public attention to a product or business, as by paid announcements in the print, broadcast, or electronic media” (The American Heritage Dictionary).

Public Relations (P.R.): “The methods and activities employed to establish and promote a favorable relationship with the public” (The American Heritage Dictionary).

The basic dictionary definitions need a little modifying.

Add to the advertising definition, the key purpose of advertising: to persuade people to purchase. "Attraction public attention" is a good first step, but not the ultimate goal.

Add to the P.R. definition, the idea of establishing, promoting and maintaining a relationship. Secondly, add an "s" to the end of public. What are the key publics that a company needs to have a good relationship with? Externally: the government/law makers, other companies, customers, the media, etc. Internally: investors, employees, etc.

"1. Corporations themselves are going increasingly global and taking their advertising agencies with them. This includes communication corporations as well as other sectors such as transportation, food, beverages, natural resources, credit cards, etc.
2. As multimedia outlets -- from privatized radio and television networks in Europe to new media and print outlets in Latin America -- expand, they require successful advertising campaigns in order to generate the revenues and attract new customers necessary to succeed as viable commercial enterprises.
3. The growth of satellite-delivered broadcasting channels, along with a rapid expansion of cable systems and networks, have in turn generated demand for increased use of advertising agencies in order to develop a sufficient customer base for either the new services themselves, or the problems they advertise."

Note that the first reason focuses on general companies, the second reason focuses on media companies that provide content and the third reason focuses on the media hardware companies.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Below are my presentation notes for a paper given at the 2013 PCA/ACA Conference in Washington, DC. The full paper contains more coverage of theory and more details on the cases. The full paper also includes coverage of the more widely known Fluke case. The presentation only included coverage of Patrick and McMillan cases.
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The Rhetoric of Rush: Misogyny and Ad Hominem Attacks

William Hart, Ph.D.
Department of Mass Communications and Journalism
Norfolk State University
Norfolk, VA 23504

wbhart@nsu.edu

A paper presented at the PCA/ACA National Conference,
March 2013, Washington, DC

Introduction

“Name-calling becomes a substitute for meaningful debate of the issues and it works quite well in the political arena. That is unfortunate, because the name-calling, while it may have a chilling effect on the genuine discussion of issues, does nothing to satisfy the millions of people who share the views of those who are the targets of those insults.”*

The answer to both questions is, ironically, Rush Limbaugh.
There is a long history of this language for Limbaugh.

"Rush Limbaugh - Feminazi Trading Cards (1992)"

The purpose of this essay is to identify, analyze and evaluate the ad hominem (name-calling) arguments used by Rush Limbaugh against women during the recent contraception controversy.

Given the frequency by which ad hominem argument is used within U.S. political discourse and given the impact this form of argument can have (e.g., national news attention), close analysis is warranted.

It is important to understand how ad hominem argument is used in political discourse in general and more specifically in political talk radio.

According to Walton, media arguments happen in a five stage feedback cycle.

First, a proponent presents an argument in the media, often a presumptive, informal argument.

Second, the proponent receives feedback “in the form of polling, observing how sales go up or not, and by various other indirect means of communicating with the audience” (Walton, p. 352).

Third, the proponent gathers further information which may indicate a need to change their argument.

The argument may then be modified ...

...and then presented again in the media.

When analyzing and evaluating media arguments, Walton proposes answering the following critical questions.

CQ1: Is the premise true (or well supported) that a is a bad person?

CQ2: Is the issue of character relevant in the type of dialogue in which the argument was used and is the allegation that a is a bad person relevant to judging a’s argument α?

CQ3: Is the conclusion of the argument that α should be (absolutely) rejected even if other evidence to support a has been presented, or is the conclusion merely (the relative claim) that α should be assigned a reduced weight of credibility, relative to the total body of evidence available?” (Walton, 1998, p. 250).

Ad Hominem Argument

One of the most common media arguments in mediated political discourse is ad hominem argument.

Abusive (or Direct) Ad Hominem Argument

“a is of bad character.

Therefore a’s argument α should not be accepted” (p. 249).

Background

Limbaugh Literature

There is much popular, book-length, criticism of Limbaugh's arguments (e.g. Franken's book).

Some scholarly analysis, but mostly social science, media effects studies

Sandra Fluke, a Georgetown University law student went before a special House Democratic committee to argue that religious institutions like her university, Georgetown University, should provide contraception coverage. Limbaugh, on the other hand, argued against a mandate.

Late February to early March 2012 Limbaugh used ad hominem attacks on Fluke and two other women in the news.

Limbaugh disagrees and says "what would you expect from a woman driver?"

See paper for further details

Case 2: Sandra Fluke, “slut”

See paper for detailed analysis of the Fluke case.

Case 3: Tracie McMillan

"Fluke Isn't the Only Woman Being Attacked By Limbaugh This Week"

Author, Traci McMillan, argues in her book that the U.S. government should do more to get better food to lower-income citizens.

Limbaugh disagrees and calls McMillan and "authorette" and "over-educated".

See paper for further details.

Evaluating the Cases [Now that you have some of the background on the cases and Walton's theoretical perspective how would you evaluate Limbaugh's arguments. How would you answer the following questions?]

CQ1: Is the premise true (or well supported) that a is a bad person?

For the Patrick case?

For the McMillan case?

CQ2: Is the issue of character relevant in the type of dialogue in which the argument was used and is the allegation that a is a bad person relevant to judging a’s argument α?

For the Patrick case?

For the McMillan case?

CQ3: Is the conclusion of the argument that α should be (absolutely) rejected even if other evidence to support a has been presented, or is the conclusion merely (the relative claim) that α should be assigned a reduced weight of credibility, relative to the total body of evidence available?” (Walton, 1998, p. 250).

Is this relevant for the above cases?

Conclusion

This essay finds that Limbaugh’s ad hominem arguments are, in some cases, not examples of fallacious reasoning. In some interpretations, the conclusions may follow from the premises. However, for Limbaugh, for Limbaugh's arguments to be valid, the premises need to be true. For example, in the Fluke case, because Limbaugh misunderstood contraceptives, his premise the Fluke being a “slut” did not hold true.

Along with these findings, this essay also raises some interesting and important questions. The present essay is a case study of three cases in a two week period in the long history of The Rush Limbaugh Show.

Are the findings here indicative of a common pattern for Limbaugh?

How often does he use ad hominem attacks?

Does Limbaugh only use the abusive ad hominem argument or does he use other forms?

Does he have a common signature, that is, does he use certain forms of informal logic and not others?

Does he have a common strategy for responding to media feedback on his arguments?

See the full paper for other key questions that should guide future criticism of the rhetoric of Rush Limbaugh.

Secrets of Amazing HDR Photography (revision3)
See the first 5 minutes or so. Save the remaining for later when we discuss photo editing.

Check out some fine HDR photos at BlametheMonkey.com. When looking at the photos on this site slide the vertical line back and forth to see the standard version of the photo vs. the HDR version. What preferences do you have? Do you like HDR photos? Pros and cons of HDR?

Quick HDR Landscape Tutorial
Play from 0:00 to 2:15. Save the remaining for later when we discuss photo editing.

What is spot metering and what does it have to do with HDR photography?

2. Instagram - "an online photo-sharing and social networking service that enables its users to take pictures, apply digital filters to them, and share them on a variety of social networking services, such as media sites including Facebook or Twitter" (Wikipedia).

When you think of a person doing science, doing research, doing an experiment, what images pop into your mind?

Has movies and television shaped your view of science and of experiments?
Hey, I feel a research question coming on. We could research that.

If it is not the Frankenstein movies that have shaped your image of scientists doing experiments, what movies or television shows have?

An experiment is a research methodology for determining the causal effects of one or more independent variables on a dependent variable, while controlling for all intervening variables.

Experiments are only one of the possible research methodologies you could use to answer your research questions. Surveys and interviews, for example, are other research methodologies. There are benefits and drawbacks when considering which research method to use to answer a research question. What are some benefits that experiments have, but surveys do not? What is it that experiments can do, that surveys cannot?

What is meant by causal relationship or causal effect?
Or put another way, to be able to say one thing caused another, what would need to be true?

Independent variable comes before the dependent variable.

Independent and dependent variables are meaningfully related.

Changes in DV must be the result of changes in IV (and not anything else)

What is experimental control?
The ability to rule out alternative explanations for the results, controlling for all intervening variables.
You want the IV to be the only thing causing an change in the DV.

Time Card: 3/17/2013 - 3/23/2013
58 hours this past week. Previous weeks of this semester.Below is a record of the work that I've done over this past week, mainly in the areas of research, teaching and service. I usually average about 50 to 55 hours per week. Unlike the summer, most of my time during the fall and spring semesters is spent on teaching and service. If you are interested in how I keep track of this information and why, please let me know.

Sunday, March 24, 2013

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Saturday, March 23, 2013

"The Nigerian writer Chinua Achebe, one of the giants of African literature, has died. He was 82. Among his many admirers - Nelson Mandela, who said that, in the company of Chinua Achebe's novels, prison walls fell down. Novelist Caryl Phillips described the impact that he had had to Newshour's James Coomarasamy. "

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

Friday, March 22, 2013

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

If you are interested in learning about the experiences of journalist who cover war, you may want to watch and listen to the clips below.

1. A trailer for "Restrepo"
This documentary, co-directed by journalists Tim Hetherington and Sebastian Junger, won the 2010 Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for an Academy Award.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

O.K., now that you have some knowledge of these past experiments do you have an answer to the questions asked earlier? Why talk about research ethics? What is the need?

What is the role of university research review boards?

Human Subjects Review Board:
“It is university policy that all projects involving risk to human subjects must be approved by the University Review Board for the Protection of Human Subjects for Funded Research. Approval is based on established university, state and sponsoring agency guidelines for the protection of the rights and welfare of subjects at risk”

Monday, March 18, 2013

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

There are two very useful online camera simulators that I'd recommend to help you get a better understanding of depth of field and other aspects of photography.

1. Start with Photonhead's "SimCam - Shutter and Aperture" page. It'll allow you to control a few features of the camera. What settings would get you those blurry background photos? Why? Also, try out the film speed or ISO simulator. Make changes in the settings and then take the photo (i.e. click on "shoot it"). Before clicking the shoot it button make a guess on what the new photo will look like. Work with the simulations until your guess match the resulting photo.

2. Also, try CameraSim.com. Once you've gotten comfortable for Photonheads camera simulator, then move on to this more complicated simulator. You can go directly to the site or try the embed below.

In addition to adjusting the shutter, aperture and mode, try adjusting the distance you are to the child and also zoom in or zoom out with the focal length setting.

When you are working with both of these simulators, it is important that after you change some settings and before you press the click button, that you make a guess as to what you think the simulated photograph will look like. Only stop messing with these simulators, once you get all your guesses right.

If so, you'll need to control the depth of field in your photograph and in order to control depth of field, you'll need to better understand aperture.

For a partial introduction to depth of field and some other topcis, check out the following video excerpt from Brian Ratty's video series (Digital Photography - The Camera (Tutorial DVD)). The videos are now a little dated, but still cover the basics well.

Sunday, March 17, 2013

Time Card: 3/10/2013 - 3/16/2013
60 hours this past week. Previous weeks of this semester.Below is a record of the work that I've done over this past week, mainly in the areas of research, teaching and service. I usually average about 50 to 55 hours per week. Unlike the summer, most of my time during the fall and spring semesters is spent on teaching and service. If you are interested in how I keep track of this information and why, please let me know.

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

To see what other games I'm currently playing for research purposes (and fun), check out my Now Playing page on Gamespot or the current activity on my Raptr wall.

If you'd like to know about my videogame research, let me know. I do research on adaptation games (i.e., games adapted from novels or films) and mystery/detective games. I'm working on my own detective game now.

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